75-year-old angler dies after snagging lure in Lake Lanier, officials say
A 75-year-old angler out on a morning fishing trip with his uncle died Friday after falling from a boat into Lake Lanier, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office said.
Deputies found Ronald Lamar Kirk, 75, of Talking Rock, unresponsive in the lake after a homeowner called 911 to report a possible drowning. After a deputy pulled him out of the water, the man was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Gainesville, where he was later pronounced dead at 10:45 a.m.
Officials said Kirk was fishing with his 89-year-old uncle when his lure snagged on a dock. Kirk tried to free the lure while balancing with one foot on the dock and another in the boat but slipped and tumbled into the lake, according to the sheriff’s office.
“The uncle attempted to remove his nephew from the water but was unable to do so,” the agency said in a statement. “He went to the nearest house to call for help.”
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources also responded and is doing its own investigation. A spokesperson for the state agency said he did not yet have any more details to release Friday afternoon.
There has been at least one other fatality reported so far this year at Lake Lanier. In February, an 85-year-old North Carolina man was found dead inside his vehicle, which was submerged near a boat ramp.
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